BASIC TECHNIQUES IN TECHNICAL WRITING

DEFINITION Informal definition- comes in a word or a phrase oftentimes called a synonym. Examples: 1. Lieu place 2. Embellish or Adorn decorate 3. Novice rookie 4. Clever smart or intelligent 5. Amenable agreeable 6. Counterfeit fake 7. Apothecary pharmacist 8. Circumvent avoid 9. Eccentric abnormal 10. Partisan biased

Formal or Sentenced definition as its name suggests, is in the form of sentence with these three elements : species (the term defined ), genus ( class or kind to which the term belongs ), and the differentia (the distinguishing characteristics that make the term different from other terms of the same class). Examples: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. Entomology is the branch of science that is concerned with the study of insects. Ichthyology is the branch of science that deals with the study of fishes. An isocracy is a form of government where all citizens have equal political power. A monarchy is a form of government in which the office of head of state is a King or a Queen and is usually hereditary or, in some cases, elected and which includes a royal house. Joule is the SI derived unit used to measure energy or work. ( SI International System ) Kelvin is the SI derived unit used to measure temperature. ( SI International System ) Amnesiais a condition in which memory is disturbed or lost. Dementia acondition that is a serious loss of cognitive ability in a previously unimpaired person, beyond what might be expected from normal aging. Coquina is a sedimentary rock formed by accumulation of abundant shell fossils and fragments. Lignite is a sedimentary rockcomposed of organic material.

Amplified ( extended or expanded ) definition comes in the form of additional sentences that support a formal definition which becomes the topic sentence of a paragraph with definition as a method of development. Examples: 1. Gas is one of the three states of matter who fills its container regardless of the shape. ( basic principle ) 2. Economics comes from the Greek word oikonomia which means ,management of a household. ( Etymology ) 3. Metamorphic rock is a type of rock that was once one form of rock but has changed to another under the influence of heat, pressure, or some other agent without passing through a liquid phase. ( physical description ) 4. Smoke is the visible vapor and gases given off by a burning or smoldering substance, especially the gray, brown, or blackish mixture of gases and suspended carbon particles resulting from the combustion of wood, peat, coal, or other organic matter. ( physical description ) 5. Recycle isto treat or process (used or waste materials) so as to make suitable for reuse: example is a pillow made of pieces plastics. ( exemplification ) 6.